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WOMEN AND DRUG DEPENDENCY -
JOANNE COWAN - MCGUIGAN
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Joanne Cowan-McGuigan has a masters of social work from
the University of Toronto. Since 1978 she has been director of Women's Programs
for the New Brunswick Alcoholism and Drug Dependency Commission. She is the
author of a review, Alcohol in New Brunswick. |
The women of New Brunswick demanded, in 1978, that services be
established for their sisters suffering from drug abuse. The Chairman of the
Alcohol and Drug Dependency Commission responded by appointing a person who
would be responsible for setting up appropriate programs.
The Commission now employs four women staff in their Programs
for Women Division. Their mandate is twofold: to develop programs to reach
chemically addicted women, and to ensure that treatment programs meet the
specific needs of the addicted women. Among the programs offered are support
groups, where ideas and information are exchanged and support is provided, with
the staff members fulfilling the role of the facilitator.
The primary focus of Programs for Women within the Commission is
public education. This is required to assist women suffering from addiction in
admitting their illness. It is felt that the greatest damage done to such women
is to label them "emotional" and to allow or assist them in becoming
cross-addicted to both alcohol and prescribed drugs.
The participants at the workshop were enthusiastic about the
quiet and efficient manner in which women are supporting each other in the
province.
WOMEN'S SELF PERCEPTION - FRANÇOISE BOUDREAU
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Françoise Boudreau is a professor in the
Sociology Department at the University of Guelph. Her areas of specialization
are the Sociology of Health and Medicine, Social Psychiatry, the Family and
Interpersonal Relations. |
Françoise summarized several studies of stereotypes that
women have about themselves. Women tend to underestimate their abilities,
particularly in the areas of decision making and paid employment.
Women's self esteem is related to positive evaluation by others,
and the feeling of being loved. Men's self esteem, on the other hand, has been
shown to be related to a sense of mastery over their lives and their
environment. Professional women have experienced increased self esteem as they
have gained increasing control over their lives.
Education is a crucial factor in raising self esteem as it
increases options for independence and control. However, this education must
include emotional and physical as well as intellectual development. Bert Komzak
of Toronto has demonstrated that increased self-assurance, assertiveness and
higher I.Q. scores were related to advanced karate training for women
students.
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